New report says only Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver have had the financial clout to successfully pull off a fully-private arena that works out for all parties.

In its latest analysis of the professional sports market in Canada, the Conference Board of Canada reports the following: “Canada’s largest cities – Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver – have the economic foundation to finance major professional sports facilities without requiring public funds, but the same financial conditions are not in place in smaller Canadian cities, or for all sports. Governments responsible for these cities, faced with requests for public investment in new sports venues, have to evaluate more than the financial costs. They should also assess whether the individual facility improves the ‘quality of life’ in a community.”

No surprise here.

Those who are against Edmonton’s arena project are quick to point out that the last four NHL arenas built in Canada were all built largely with private money, but it’s crucial to note that only in the Toronto was the private arena project an unqualified success for all parties, including the private owner himself.

In Vancouver, Montreal and Ottawa, the various private owners all ran into massive problems — some of them related to market size, some to the design of the arena and district, some of financing — but all leading to private builder either going bankrupt or having to sell out at a huge loss. So I’d suggest that the Conference Board’s claim that the three Canadian cities have all succeeded with private-financing of NHL arenas is a bit off, that only Toronto has truly met that mark.

If we look at the eight most recent NHL buildings erected in Canada, along with the one planned in Quebec City, we see that Edmonton, Calgary, Hamilton and Quebec City were all done almost completely with public money, while Winnipeg will have more than $200 million in public subsidy. In Edmonton, if a new arena isn’t built downtown with a mixture of public and private funds, Northlands has talked about needing more than $200 million in public funds to renovate Rexall Place.

At other levels of hockey, such as major junior in cities like Medicine Hat, Red Deer and Lethbridge, it’s the norm for the big arena to be built with public money.

“In an ideal world, pro sports franchises and their playing facilities would be privately-financed,” said Glen Hodgson, Senior Vice-President and Chief Economist. “But in Canada, this ideal has only worked out in the three largest cities whose arenas host National Hockey League teams.

“Not all pro sports facilities, and not all communities, enjoy comparable strength in terms of private financial capacity for construction, maintenance, and operation. The size of the local market may be too small; there may be only a limited number of events that could use the facility and pay rent; and/or there may be insufficient private sector appetite for risk-taking, or inadequate local and national corporate sponsorship.

“At that point, other questions can be posed about whether there are any economic benefits to society from making available some form of public financial support for the facility.

“Professional sports facilities can have attributes of what economists call ‘public goods’ —that is, they provide economic benefits to society as a whole, and not just to the franchise owners, athletes, and fans. For example, a new pro sports facility and the franchise or franchises that use it might help to raise the profile of a community as a place for private investors to locate. The facility could encourage local entrepreneurs to create new ventures, or it could draw in tourists. All these things would bring ongoing economic benefits to the community.”

I agree almost all what Hodgson has to say here, including the notion that it’s best for private money to fund NHL arenas. That said, I put far more emphasis on the notion that quality of life is a key consideration, at least here in Edmonton.

We have largely failed built an attractive city, especially when it comes to our downtown.

When civic leaders have said much of the architecture here is “crap,” the only outcry was one of support and agreement.

Many folks love it here in Edmonton and I’m in that number. I’ve lived in the Edmonton region all my life and I’m staying here. But I’m not blind to my city’s faults, nor deaf to a constant narrative: Yes, I live in Edmonton because I have a good job or my husband has a good job, but we can’t wait to get back to (British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Ontario).”

Does that sound familiar to you? I’ve heard it dozens of times.

If we refuse to invest in the kinds of amenities that will make Edmonton a more vital and attractive city, many people will refuse to invest their lives in this city.

What we need is the kind of city with neighborhoods people want to live in, streets they want to visit, sports and cultural facilities they want to attend. We need to built a city that arouses passion in people, that makes them feel attached to the place.

In the past, we’ve made some effort this regard, and made crucial investments, but it’s important to note that all of our sports and cultural facilities have been built almost entirely with public money.

Part of the problem here is our population. We don’t have the sheer numbers of Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver.

Another issue is that we lack head offices here. Few outside corporations are willing to make major investments in the public life of this city. If things are going to get better here, we’ve found we can’t count on them, as others cities might be able to do.

At some point, we will get to that needed population here where public investment in many cultural facilities isn’t needed, when private operators can do it on their own.

But that’s not Edmonton in 2011, as much as some would argue that we’re no different than Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver.

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